We're with the Band: The Raveonettes

Sune Rose Wagner inspires Lust

Danish Duo the Raveonettes (a.k.a. Sune Rose Wagner and Sharin Foo) emerged in 2002 with their signature brand of noirish garage pop, and we've been all ears ever since. We caught up with Wagner on the eve of a five-city tour that begins tonight; the pair then plans to return to the studio and record a follow-up to last year's Lust Lust Lust, their critically acclaimed fourth album.

How is Lust Lust Lust different from your previous work?

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I think it's a lot darker than the stuff we'd done before. And it's very minimal, which we liked about it. We kept the instrumentation sparse—simple guitars and breakbeats—and really concentrated on the vocals.

You name is a reference to the Buddy Holly classic "Rave On" and to the Ronettes. How did you get into `50s and `60s music?

That's what I grew up listening to. I found it appealing in a nostalgic way. I dreamed a lot when I was a kid, so that music was kind of perfect for it.

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What musicians from other eras are your strongest influences?

It probably starts with Hank Williams. The `70s would be Suicide and the Ramones, and the `80s would be Echo & the Bunnymen and Sonic Youth.

Your songs are often described as having a cinematic quality. What kind of movies are you into?

Some of my favorite directors are Hitchcock, Tim Burton, David Lynch—to this day, Twin Peaks is probably my favorite TV show of all time. I watch a lot of documentaries and try to see as many movies as possible—I have hundreds and hundreds at home—to soak up inspiration.

What other bands are you currently listening to?

I like Ladyhawke. Crystal Castles are really great and raw and cool. Glasvegas. And of course, I've always been into Madonna.

You live in New York and Sharin lives in LA. How does that work?

I usually come up with stuff and send it to her. She'll comment on it and then we'll fine-tune it.

I hear you used to have a set of guidelines for your songs.

They could have only three chords and had to be under three minutes. And all the songs had to be in the same key. But we banished the guidelines when we did Pretty in Black.

What was the idea behind that?

Just to inspire ourselves and try to make things interesting. It was partly inspired by the Dogme movement with Lars Von Trier, to go back to basics and use only the bare minimum and just be really creative within those confinements. But it felt really liberating—it was a very enjoyable creative process.

Are you experimenting with anything new on the current tour?

We're bringing our own lighting director this time, which I'm excited about. I always enjoy shows with really good lights, so I thought it was time we step it up on that part.

You just announced a new album for 2009. What can we expect?

We want to find a real producer, because we've never really tried that—to work with someone who'll give us a swift kick in the butt and say, "Hey, you can do better than that." I think we want to make an album that might go a little more all over the place—in a good way—whereas Lust Lust Lust stayed in the same style for the whole album.

How would you describe the Raveonettes' fashion?

Classic, minimal—jeans and a white T-shirt. And we like to wear a lot of black—apparently that's our favorite color. But in the summertime, I'm very colorful.

Any preference for designers?

April 77 does some nice stuff. I go vintage shopping a lot to see what I can find. But I basically have one pair of pants that I'll wear out and then I'll buy a new pair. I don't have, like, a zillion things to choose from at home. I'm very simple.